The present invention relates to a method for processing food, and more particularly to such a method wherein the feed is brined and then flushed to reduce the level of the brining material.
A wide variety of methods for processing feed are well known in the industry. One such method, used largely in processing fruit and vegetables and particularly appropriate to the production of maraschino cherries, is known as "leaching." This process preserves the fruit and provides it with a desired color and sugar level. The fruit is first soaked in a brine solution containing sulphur dioxide (SO.sub.2). The brine solution acts as both a preservative and a bleaching agent. Following brining, the fruit has a relatively high SO.sub.2 content and is yellow in color. Next, the fruit is pitted, sized, and sorted. The fruit is then leached or flushed with water to drive the SO.sub.2 content down to acceptable levels. The discharge from the leaching process must be treated to meet the applicable effluent standards. The fruit is then moved to a finishing tank where the fruit is given the desired color and sugar content by cycling corn syrup and feed color through the finishing tank.
The described process has several shortcomings. First, the leaching process requires large volumes of fresh water. Second, leaching undesirably removes the natural sugar in the fruit as well as the brining material. This natural sugar must be replaced during the finishing step. Third, treatment of the discharge water is extremely expensive, primarily as a result of the sugars leached from the fruit. And finally, the finishing step, which is undesirably time consuming due to the slow rate at which the fruit will accept the sugar, is lengthened by the need to restore the natural sugar lost during leaching.